"Above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you, because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don't believe in magic will never find it." -Roald Dahl

Friday, August 5, 2011

More Yudu Experiments: Silver Argent, Ryonet Inks, Altering a Graphic

I have been wanting to figure out how to use a photo as a graphic on my Yudu. I have been less than successful for a variety of reasons, but recently I got a little motivation to figure it out. I also have been wanting to try my new Ryonet Enviroline inks, and the Yudu brand Silver Argent ink.

I found an inkstamp graphic of the Three Gossips by searching Yahoo Images. I wanted to play on words and link it to a little joke (you can find my post about Keith-in-Alaska's joke of the The Three Gossips by clicking here).

Using a Sharpie and White Out film on my paper original, I changed the graphic to have less detail so I could use my 110 mesh screen and easily wash out unburned emulsion from the design. It became this when I added the text and copied it onto a transparency :

So let's talk ink! Up until now, I have only LOVED Yudu brand inks. The only other fabric silk screen ink I have used has been Speedball, which I found to be much too thin, requiring more than one pass with the squeegee. I bought a little starter set of Ryonet's Enviroline inks and WOW! (You can find a link to Ryonet on my Yudu page -- see the tabs above.) The Enviroline inks do have an odor when wet, unlike the Yudu inks, but they are thick, creamy, and so much cheaper! The kit I purchased from Ryonet had four pints of ink at about 84 cents per ounce.

I love the blue and chose that color for my "I rock" shirts.

My next shirt had text that included one word that I wanted to emphasize. I did not want to have to use two screens and registration panels, so I simply beaded the ink on the screen in two colors. I placed the silver only over the "Mr." and floodfilled it. I cleaned off my squeegee and placed a thick bead of black and floodfilled the rest of the screen. I cleaned off my squeegee and pulled the ink to get this:

This is probably not the preferred method for adding a second color, but it was so quick and easy-- painless in fact! I LOVE the silver argent Yudu ink! It is sparkly and kind of glitters! I will definitely be using this on a shirt for my daughter, which is why I bought this ink in the first place!

I am still plugging away, playing with my Yudu and loving that machine! You are welcome to check my Yudu page (see the tab above or click here) to find Provocraft's Shannon Lerner's tips on using the Yudu, my tips on using direct (liquid) emulsion, my sources for Yudu and aftermarket Yudu-compatible products, and links to my other Yudu projects!

They Like Me! My 20 seconds of Fame

Total Pageviews

When you get to the end of all the light you know and it's time to step into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing that one of two things shall happen: either you will be given something solid to stand on, or you will be taught how to fly.